Port workers clearing cargo backlog following strike

For more than a week, many of the industrial cranes at the twin ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach - the nation's two largest by container traffic - hung high in the air, lifeless above empty berths.

But for the past two days, those cranes have been busy, a sure sign the complex is back to complete operations. | » Bigger strike looming?

"If you look around the port now, almost all the cranes are at boom," said Patrick Burgoyne, president & CEO of Yusen Terminals at the Port of Los Angeles. "There's plenty of activity."

At both ports, members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union were working night and day as terminal operators sought to clear the backlog of more than a week's worth of cargo. An eight-day strike called by the ILWU's Local 63 Office Clerical Unit ended Tuesday night, and thousands of workers - many of whom had no direct connection to the job action but were honoring picket lines - returned early Wednesday.

By late Thursday afternoon, there were 36 container ships at berths in both ports, with another seven at anchor off the coast, waiting for terminal space to become available, according to the Marine Exchange of Southern California. Twelve ships are expected to arrive today.

"That's a heck of a lot of ships," said Capt. Dick McKenna, executive director of the Marine Exchange. "As much labor as there is, it's a matter of turnaround. There's just a lot to be done."

On Tuesday, at the height of the port shutdown, the ports had 13 ships at anchor unable to dock at a berth, McKenna said. He estimated that by Saturday the ports should have berths available for all incoming ships.

"It's about making the antelope pass through the python now," he said. "As we get berths cleared, then we'll get cleared back to zero container vessels at anchor. That is the real norm."

At the Port of Long Beach, spokesman Art Wong said crews worked through the night to move cargo. He said it is rare to have overnight workers at this time of the year - after most holiday goods have arrived in the United States - but terminal operators want to clear as much cargo as possible.

"At this time of the year they might have cut back on the night shifts," Wong said. "They seem to be catching up a little faster than I thought they would."

Mike Fox, chief executive of Fox Transportation in Rancho Cucamonga, said his drivers, who could not work during the strike, were working 24 hours a day.

He said customers have been prioritizing what shipments are most important for them - some items are "hot" while others are "superhot" - as his company works to haul the most timely cargo to and from the docks.

Fox said there have been some backups for his truck drivers at terminal gates and said he was urging the operators to open up even more gates in the overnight hours.

ILWU member Patricia Aguirre said she was pleased to return to a full work schedule. Aguirre, whose marine clerks bargaining unit was not on strike but honored the Office Clerical Unit picket lines, was only able to pick up limited shifts during the strike at employers not affected by the job action. (Some terminal operators had earlier reached deals with the striking Office Clerical Unit.)

"It was a bit of an awakening to have that hit," she said. "To not be able to go to work is a crazy thing."